https://operawire.com/obituary-david-hockney-passes-away-at-88/
Designer and artist David Hockney passed away on June 11. He was 88. Hockney was born on July 9, 1937 in the West Riding of Yorkshire, England. He studied art at the Royal College of Art (RCA) in London. After graduating, he taught at Maidstone College of Art, and went on to teach at several universities in the U.S. He {…}
https://operawire.com/iurii-samoilov-ana-maria-martinez-kristina-mkhitaryan-nicole-car-barbara-hannigan-lead-new-cd-dvd-releases/
Welcome back as we explore the latest CD and DVD releases from around the opera world. This week audiences will get new opera recordings including one very famed contemporary Mexican work and two classic works. There are also some solo albums and choral works to look forward to. Eugene Onegin EuroArts releases a recording of the Teatro Real’s recent staging {…}
https://operawire.com/obituary-british-ukrainian-bass-baritone-pavlo-hunka-dies-at-67/
On May 5, British-Ukrainian bass-baritone Pavlo Hunka died at the age of 67. Born in England to a Ukrainian father and an English mother on April 7, 1959, Hunka qualified as a linguist and practiced as a lawyer in the UK before changing to a singing career. He first began vocal studies at Manchester’s Royal Northern College of Music and {…}
https://operawire.com/concertgebouw-amsterdam-announces-2026-27-season-featuring-magdalena-kozena-nina-stemme-cecilia-bartoli-huw-montague-rendall-julia-kleiter-benjamin-bruns/
The Concertgebouw Amsterdam has announced its 2026-27 season. Here is a look at the vocal performances. The Royal Swedish Orchestra and Alan Gilbert perform music by Wagner alongside Nina Stemme. Performance Date: August 17, 2026 The Ukrainian Freedom Orchestra and Keri-Lynn Wilson perform music by Frolyak, Mahler, and Beethoven alongside soprano Julia Kleiter. Performance Date: August 19, 2026 The Seoul Philharmonic {…}
https://operawire.com/the-many-kinds-of-labour-in-operatic-past-and-present/
(Photo Credit: WDR/Teatro Real/Javier del Real) From the earliest days of opera to the cutting edge of today, work was and remains at the heart of opera plots no matter how inventive they are. One of the earliest operas, essentially the one which spearheaded the start of opera itself, Jacopo Peri’s ‘Dafne‘ (1598), features the theme of labour as Apollo’s {…}
https://operawire.com/rohs-jette-parker-artists-to-present-triple-bill-tales-of-love-loss/
The Jette Parker Artists will present “Tales of Love and Loss,” a triple bill of chamber operas by contemporary female composers, at the Royal Opera House’s Linbury Theatre from May 1 to 9, 2026. Peggy Wu conducts the Britten Sinfonia. Talia Stern makes her Royal Opera House debut directing the production. The evening includes the world premiere of the chamber {…}
https://operawire.com/obituary-baritone-teacher-robert-rice-dies/
(Photo credit: Richard Ecclestone) Baritone, choral director, composer, and teacher Robert Rice has passed away. Rice was born in London, England. He studied music on a choral scholarship at King’s College, Cambridge. He went on to complete postgrad work at the Royal Academy of Music. Rice performed an extensive repertoire including opera, oratorio, and choral works. In 2007, he was {…}
https://operawire.com/obituary-helmuth-rilling-dies-at-92/
(Photo credit: Georg Anderhub) Conductor Helmuth Rilling has passed away at the age of 92. Rilling was born in Stuttgart, Germany in May 29, 1933. He studied at the Protestant Seminaries in Württemberg and Stuttgart College of Music. Later, he studied with Fernando Germani in Rome and at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena, and with Leonard Bernstein in New {…}
https://operawire.com/leon-botstein-in-contact-with-epstein-after-accusations-resurfaced-emails-show-epstein-was-opera-aficionado/
Newly reviewed emails from the Jeffrey Epstein Files are indicating that Leon Botstein was aware of previous allegations against Epstein. According to an email uncovered by the Times Union on Jan. 4, 2015, Botstein offered Epstein words of condolences a day after The Guardian published a story about Epstein’s ties to then-Prince Andrew. The email read, “When I sent you {…}
